About Me

I have spent the first half of my career
as a pastor of the church, and the second half as a teacher in the university and the church. I experience much satisfaction working in both worlds. As I engage in ongoing research to support my third activity which is writing, I am constantly finding many interesting items on the net and from friends which I edit and share on my Colleagues List. That way, you too might enjoy information from the worlds of religion and culture. As of September 2016, this profile has received almost 1,800 hits.
Thanks for your interest!
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Saturday, January 16, 2016

Colleagues List, January 17th, 2016

Vol. XI. No. 21

*****GLOBAL AND ECUMENICAL IN SCOPECANADIAN IN PERSPECTIVE

Wayne A. Holst, EditorMy E-Mail Address:waholst@telus.netColleagues List Web Site:http://colleagueslist.blogspot.com"Quicklinks" are included with many itemsat the beginning of this issue. To get a morecomplete picture, however, scroll down tofind your special selection in the body ofthe blog.*****Dear Colleagues:I attended the annual Peter CraigieMemorial Lecture at my Universityof Calgary this week and took noteswhich I am pleased to share with you.My Special Item for this week is entitled:"Early Christianity - A Bookish Religion" Peter Craigie Lecture by Dr. Larry Hurtado Edinburgh UniversityPlease scroll down to read it.--Colleague Contributions for this week are from -Joan Gray (Calgary AB) shares a link fromDawn Waring who writes: "4JustPeace"a Blog on Accompanyment in Palestine & Israelhttp://tinyurl.com/gpxmxt9--John Stackhouse Jr. (Moncton, NB) provides more on the 'Wheaton College Issue' froma Canadian evangelical perspective, entitled:"Justice Means Justice for Everyone"http://tinyurl.com/gszb3wp--Ron Rolheiser (San Antonio TX) reflects onthe theme: "Forever Being Ahead of Our Souls"http://tinyurl.com/z7yc9k2--Jim Taylor (Okanagan BC) writes a column on the theme of powerlessness -"How Does it Feel to Feel Like God?"http://tinyurl.com/j9ols5r--

Martin Marty (Chicago IL) takes on a timelysubject in inter-faith relations entitled:"Blasphemy"http://tinyurl.com/j9p4j7zThanks to all five of you for your efforts.--Net Notes that caught my eye this week -"Anglican Primates Issue Communique" - meetingin Canterbury in the UK, leaders of the churchprovinces from around the world sought to keepthe Anglican Communion together, under stress(Anglican Journal) http://tinyurl.com/zgukqnxJean Vanier was invited to address them atthe conclusion of their deliberations and thisCatholic spiritual guide was heard respectfully(Anglican Journal) http://tinyurl.com/h9hfkg7--"Bishop Henry Blasts LGBTQ Guidelines" - theRC bishop of Calgary is upset with a new setof provincial operational guidelines. He saysAlberta is prejudiced against Catholics but theprovince says tt must serve all citizens fairly(Metro News) http://tinyurl.com/houod3m--

"MLK: Non-Violence, the Sword that Heals" -to remember his birthday, read an articleon a pivotal theme by the late civil rights leader(Sightings) http://tinyurl.com/hxkf2lq--"Dr. Izzeldin Abuelish Becomes a Canadian" -Gaza pediatrician whose wife died and several children perished from an Israeli attack is nowa medical educator at the University of Toronto. He wrote the book "I Shall Not Hate" (The Times of Israel)http://tinyurl.com/olrsa9e--"Most Read Christian Century Articles of 2015" -catch up on articles by the major mouthpiece of American mainline and progressive Protestantism (The Christian Century) http://tinyurl.com/jnyeoos--"Imam Fethullah Gulen Inspires So Much Good" - a Turkish spiritual leader, living in exile in the USA is praised for his thought and good works(You Tube and Tweet Links)http://tinyurl.com/gu4vo8k"Turkey Issues Warrant for the Arrest of the Premier's Rival as he is considered a threat to the current regime (Globe and Mail) http://tinyurl.com/j4tofrf--"Under ISIS - What It's Like to Live as a Christian" - what does it mean to be a religious minority in Syria today? A Syrian tells his story (Buzz Feed) http://tinyurl.com/hhuzemf--"Indian Religious Leaders Debunk Conversion Claims" - a Hindu group trumpets mass conversions of Muslims and Christians to Hinduism, but is met with cynicism (UCA News) http://tinyurl.com/jsy2qvq--"Germany Encounters Migrants; Nation Faces New Realities" - as Germany opens its doors to many immigrants, sexual attacks on women in Cologne by "foreigners" from another culture sparks public resentment (NY Times)http://tinyurl.com/jg7anz8--

"New 'Anne of Green Gables' Coming in 2017 to Canadian TV" - a perennial favourite of Canadians and many others world-wide is returning in a televised new version (Hollywood Reporter) http://tinyurl.com/htsvo6u--Wisdom of the Week -Edith Stein, Tertullian, Oscar Romero,Teresa of Avila, James Baldwin, Hermann Hesse,Mother Teresa and Alexander Solzhenitsyn- share their insights, so please scroll down to read what they have to tell us--On This Day - we just passed a specialanniversary for a famous American martyrMartin Luther King Jr. :"MLK Obituary - Birth Date and Story" Born January 15th, 1929http://tinyurl.com/gq3qxxu--Closing Thought - this week is from a familiarname to readers of Colleagues ListHenri J. M. NouwenScroll to the end of the blog to read him.(end)For those wanting to know more aboutour winter program, please scroll tothe end of the blog.Beginning Our Program Season -Winter 2016 Adult Spiritual DevelopmentACTS Ministry at St. David's United Church, CalgaryThanks for joining us again this week.Last week, CL had more than 1,000 hits.Wayne

About the Speaker:Larry Hurtado was most recently the professorial chair in New Testament in the University of Edinburgh, where he founded the Centre for the Study of Christian Origins. He is perhaps most well known for his numerous publications on the origins of devotion to Jesus, particularly his book, "Lord Jesus Christ: Devotion to Jesus in Earliest Christianity" (Eerdmans, 2003). He has also contributed to the study of New Testament textual criticism and has led in the study of earliest Christian manuscripts, as in his book, "The Earliest Christian Artifacts: Manuscripts and Christian Origins (Eerdmans, 2005). His forthcoming book emphasizes the distinctive nature of early Christianity in its Roman-era setting: "Destroyer of the Gods: Christian Distinctiveness in the Roman World" (Baylor University Press, 2016). He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 2008, and was President of the British New Testament Society, 2009-2012.

***The lecture has two parts - 1. Reading texts - in corporate early church worship: Old Testament (Hebrew Bible) scriptures, and Christian texts/Paul's letters/Christian gospels2. Writing texts - over 200 known to exist which were adapted for reading - Paul's letters/Gospels/Revelation

--I Reading TextsTextual criticism reveals the significant impactof Judaism on Jesus. Jewish and Christian texts were used in church worship from the second century CE onward. II Timothy 2:15 exhorts: "Give attention to the public reading and study of the scriptures." Texts appeared in a variety of forms, yet neverdid they assume exclusivity. Readers were originally often pagans and gentiles, withoutmuch awareness of the Hebrew scriptures.Hebrew Bible texts were used from the beginningwith the intention of showing that "Jesus wasthe fulfilment of scripture."The manuscripts prepared and used for Christian worship became a new genre and prescribedlectionary readings were widespread. All thisemerged from a Jewish matrix. The Torah itself -The Law and the Prophets - was read regularlyas was done in the Jewish synagogues of thediaspora. Both Josephus and Philo comment onthis and the practice was replicated in the Christianchurches. Scripture reading at worship was uniqueto Judaism and Christianity. This was in contrast to Greek and Roman religious practice at the time.Paul's letters were written with the specific intentof being read at services of worship. Some wereintended for those with Jewish, and others with Gentile, backgrounds. Local churches were encouraged to share these letters amongstthemselves, and these became the first authoritative Christian scriptures. Such letterswere written surrogates for Paul's actual presence.II Peter refers to "other scriptures" with apostolicstatus even though there was disagreement overwhat texts were most "authentically apostolic"Still, by the mid-second century, both the Gospelsand Paul's letters as we know them from the NewTestament were in circulation. These were "waiting"to become part of the Christian canon.While not all hearers of these texts were literate,one literate reader was required in each setting.Roman culture was strongly focused on writtentexts and this is why Christians moved early tothe use of written biblical texts.In addition to public texts, other texts for moreprivate devotional usage were circulated too.Apocryphal books tended to be of this type.II Writing TextsFor the number of Christians (200,000 by the second century) there were a remarkable number of circulating texts and the volume of booksincreased rapidly. Letters were common meansof communication at that time and letters bythe Romans Cicero and Seneca, were widelycirculated. Paul was only following customsalready familiar to many. Nevertheless, Paul'sletters tended to be lengthier than most writers.

A variety of texts existed - e.g. homilies, treatises,martyr stories and books on church order. It wasnot long before both "heretical" and "serious"texts emerged. We know of many texts of whichwe have no copies but which were mentioned inthe texts we do have.Paul used his letters (Romans 71,000 words; Philippians 16,000) for serious teaching, as waspracticed by the Greek and Roman philosophers."Great men" biographies were popular and thisis why Christians took to hearing Jesus storiesread. These became the first gospels. Suchgospels were unique and not part of the Jewishtradition (no existing gospels of Moses or Elijah, for example.) In the eventual New Testament, Jesus gets a lot of space. Four gospels-worth!Apocalyptic literature (last times themes) like Revelation which was sent to "Seven Churches of Asia) by the apostle John (or written in his name) formed another new genre of books, even though the Old Testament book of Daniel emerged as a similar type of "textually self-conscious" literature. They were written with a greeting, a body, and a closing benediction and as a single, unified composition.First written as prophetic, not apocalyptic, literatureRevelation represents the urgency of the Christianlate/first, early/second century period from whichit emerged. While Paul probably used a scribe totake down his words, John (or his namesake) may well have written his book himself.Copying and dissemination of early texts took muchtime and effort. These circulated through the earlyChristian networks and interactions. Texts wereusually hand-delivered to the designated recipientand these deliveries were costly, and given highpriority.While the original Christian texts were writtenin scroll-form, a preference for codices developed (stitched pages into a book-format as we know it today.) This was likely a counter-cultural moveon the part of Christians because scrolls werestill commonly accepted in general society.Noma Sacra or "Sacred Name" texts were a Christianinvention of the time. These writings focused onkey words like Jesus/Christ/God /Lord and were a Christian scribal innovation to "set off" certain terms believed to be significant about the faith. This was a take-off from the Hebrew term "Yahweh" but only for Christians the terms were direct references, not substitutes for divine names.---A vivid textual culture is key to understandingChristian "bookishness" from the very beginning.This development was distinct. Texts becamecentral for Christians - even as Jews and later,Muslims became known as "People of the Book" in their own distinct ways. This set apart the three faiths of Jerusalem from the other great faith traditions.(end)*****COLLEAGUE CONTRIBUTIONSJoan Gray, Calgary, ABJanuary 12th, 2016Wayne, I had wanted to send you a link to a blog that you might want to just
pass to Colleagues List members.

You may have heard of Dawn Waring and I wanted to give you the information on her blog so you can have a look at it.

Personally, I read most
of her blog entries. I do admire her Christian spirit and
determination. I met her in Edmonton. She and a United Church minister by
the name of Nancy Steeves lead a group of interested people (mostly United
Church members) on a trip to Egypt, Jordan and Israel (before the Arab Spring began some years ago.) I was privileged to be part of that group...

So if you google "4justpeace" the first link coming up is her WordPress blog.

IMAM FETHULLAH GULEN INSPIRES SO MUCH GOODExile in America has Global Compassionate ReachYou Tube and Tweet LinksJanuary, 2016http://tinyurl.com/gu4vo8kTurkey Issues Warrant for theArrest of Premier's Rival =He is Considered a Threat to the Current RegimeGlobe and MailDecember 19th, 2016http://tinyurl.com/j4tofrf--UNDER ISIS - WHAT IT'S LIKETO LIVE AS A CHRISTIANA Syrian Tells His StoryBuzz FeedJanuary 9th, 2016http://tinyurl.com/hhuzemf--

INDIAN RELIGIOUS LEADERS DEBUNK CONVERSION CLAIMSHindu Group Trumpets Mass ConversionsUCA NewsJanuary 15th, 2016http://tinyurl.com/jsy2qvq--GERMANY ENCOUNTERS MIGRANTS,NATION FACES NEW REALITIESSexual Attacks on Women by Men of Different CultureNew York TimesJanuary 14th, 2016http://tinyurl.com/jg7anz8--NEW 'ANNE OF GREEN GABLES'COMING IN 2017 TO CANADIAN TVHollywood ReporterJanuary 12th, 2016http://tinyurl.com/htsvo6u

*****WISDOM OF THE WEEKFrom Sojourners and the Bruderhof online:The concept which assumes that everything in the Church is irrevocably set for all times appears to me to be a false one. It would be naive to disregard that the Church has a history; the Church is a human institution and like all things human, was destined to change and evolve; likewise, its development takes place often in the form of struggles. - Edith Stein--

Nothing that is God's is obtainable by money. - Tertullian--It is wrong to be sad. Christians cannot be pessimists. Christians must always nourish in their hearts the fullness of joy.

Try it, brothers and sisters; I have tried it many times and in the darkest moments, when slander and persecution were at their worst: to unite myself intimately with Christ, my friend, and to feel a comfort that all the joys of the earth do not give – the joy of feeling yourself close to God, even when humans do not understand you. It is the deepest joy the heart can have.- Oscar Romero--Prayer is an act of love; words are not needed. Even if sickness distracts from thoughts, all that is needed is the will to love.- Teresa of Avila--

Guilt is a luxury that we can no longer afford. I know you didn't do it, and I didn't do it either, but I am responsible for it because I am a man and a citizen of this country and you are responsible for it, for the very same reason.- James Baldwin--All disrespect, all irreverence, all hard-heartedness, all contempt is nothing else than killing. And it is possible to kill not only what is in the present, but also that which is in the future. With just a little witty skepticism we can kill a good deal of the future in a child or young person. Life is waiting everywhere, flowering everywhere, but we only see a small part of it and trample much of it with our feet.- Hermann Hesse--

We are all capable of good and evil. We are not born bad; everybody has something good inside. Some hide it, some neglect it, but it is there.

God created us to love and to be loved, so it is our test from God to choose one path or the other.- Mother Teresa--If the world has not approached its end, it has reached a major watershed in history, equal in importance to the turn from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance. It will demand from us a spiritual blaze, we shall have to rise to a new height of vision, to a new level of life where our physical nature will not be cursed as in the Middle Ages, but even more importantly, our spiritual being will not be trampled upon as in the Modern Era...No one on earth has any other way left but upwards.- Alexander Solzhenitsyn*****ON THIS DAYFrom the archives of the New York Times"MLK Obituary - Birth Date and Story" Born January 15th, 1929http://tinyurl.com/gq3qxxu

*****CLOSING THOUGHT - Henri J.M. NouwenForgiveness is the name of love practiced among people who love poorly. The hard truth is that all people love poorly. We need to forgive and be forgiven every day,every hour increasingly. That is the great work of love among the fellowship of the weak thatIs the human family.- Henri J.M. Nouwen(end)Beginning Our Program Season -Winter 2016 Adult Spiritual DevelopmentACTS Ministry at St. David's United Church, CalgaryWINTER 2016 MONDAY NIGHT STUDYTheme: "The Other Two Religions of Jerusalem" Judaism and IslamBooks: "Chosen? Reading the Bible Amid the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict" by Walter Brueggemann "Islam: A Short History" by Karen Armstronghttp://tinyurl.com/jzbybmjhttp://tinyurl.com/hr4ohvd

A ten-week investigation into the religious sources of modern global unrest centered in the Mid-East:Ten Monday evenings, 7-9PMIn the St. David's TM RoomJanuary 18th - March 21st, 2015Including Monday of Family WeekendBooks and Registration/Hospitality - $60.00Books only - $35.00Total book sets available for sale: 30.Now beginning seventeen years of Monday Night StudiesOur thirty-second series of (usually) ten week sessions!Course design to appear here soon.Check our complete archives for all 46 book studies:http://tinyurl.com/q3bw6dh***THURSDAY MORNING BIBLE STUDYTheme: Winter Study Series to be determined in JanuaryTen sessions 10-11 AMGathering at 9:30AMIn the St. David's TM RoomJanuary 21st - March 24th.No charge.Preparation Session, Thursday, January 14th, 2016

Study resource -

The DK Complete Bible Handbookhttp://tinyurl.com/odxlv7q(copy available in our church library)The Bible Study Group will provide the service reflection Sunday, Jan. 17th, 2016*****

ACTS LENTEN RETREAT, 2016SOMETHING TO ANTICIPATEIN THE NEW YEARMount St. Francis Retreat CentreCochrane, Albertahttp://www.mountstfrancis.ca/Mark your calendars!Sunday February 28th11:30 AM - 4:00 PMJohn Griffith is on sabbatical this year.Reflections will be led by a Franciscan on staff.

***ST. DAVID'S SPIRITUAL TRAVELERSComing Soon - our "Memories Project" --Sight and Sound Packet contributed by those taking the "Jerusalem and the Lands of Three Great Faiths" tour last October.Available free to all who took and tour with additional packets at a modest price for those interested.--New Project Later This Winter --"Where Would You Like to Travel Next?"Beginning our process to find a destinationfor a trip somewhere in the world in 2017.*****